In June, the hermit kingdom launched a medium-range Musudan missile that successfully flew half the distance to Japan before crashing into the ocean.
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In the previous launch last week, the missile exploded shortly after takeoff, according to research by the U.S. authorities. North Korean time near the northwestern city of Kusong.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) test-fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile on Thursday morning, which Seoul’s military presumed to have failed.
Carter said “the recent dramatic increase in North Korean nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches remind us of the grave threat it poses to our collective security”.
The unsuccessful launch followed the start of the two-day meeting in Washington between defense and foreign ministers of South Korea and the United States.
Some analysts have also stressed that deploying missile defence systems may fuel a risky arms race in Northeast Asia, as China and Russian Federation would probably take counter-measures that the United States and South Korea can not afford.
The talks are between Secretary of State John Kerry and Carter, and their South Korean counterparts Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and Defence Minister Han Min-koo.
North Korea has reportedly warned that if it feels threatened by the United States, it may launch a nuclear attack on the country.
The latest launch is the eighth Musudan missile fired off this year by the reclusive country. Thirty-three minutes is the maximum time it would take a nuclear-tipped missile from the farthest point of the earth to reach the US. The first failed, but the second shot traveled 400 km, more than halfway toward the southwest coast of Japan. With the timing of its latest launch, Pyongyang may have hoped to propel itself back to the top of the USA political agenda. “It’ll stay that way so, I don’t think it matters to them who wins”, he said.
“Based on these successes, as well as North Korean-released information, experts reassessed several missile programs as being more capable and closer to deployment”, Klingner added.
Such a weapon could threaten military installations on Guam and the US nuclear bombers that play a key role in deterrence on the Korean Peninsula.
“For political purposes, they re conducting these Musudan launches and through these failed tests, they ve shown their limits”, Han said according to translated remarks.
The secretive North says it has a sovereign right to pursue a space programme.
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North Korea continues to threaten the peace on the Korean Peninsula, and its nuclear and missile programs threaten the region and globe.
